Brazing alloy



June 13, 1961 w, s 2,988,446

BRAZING ALLQY Filed July 18, 1958 Mn 90 so 70 6O 50 4o 30 "20 IO Cu MANGANESE-V0 DAVID WADE RHYS INVENTOR.

ATTORNEY United States Patent 2,988,446 BRAZING ALLOY David Wade Rhys, Hounslow, England, assignor to The International Nickel Company, Inc., New York, N.

a corporation of Delaware Filed July 18,1958, Ser. No. 749,448 Claims priority, application Great Britain Oct. 1, 1957 2 Claims. (Cl. 75-134) The present invention relates to brazing and, more particularly, to brazing alloys or solders adapted to be used in joining metal parts into articles exposed in use to elevated temperatures.

It is well known that in the brazing of metal parts to form articles subjected in use to temperatures of 550 C. and above, for example, up to about 900 C., it is necessary to use a brazing alloy which will give a strong joint at these temperatures. The allows commonly used in the past for this purpose have been base-metal compositions but these tend to react readily with the parent alloys, i.e., the alloys to be joined together. In consequence they flow sluggishly and do not readily make well-filled joints.

Considerable improvement is obtained with nickelpalladium-manganese alloys, which flow readily and form joints which are strong at high temperatures. A brazing alloy is, however, commonly required in the form of wire, foil or the like because in such a form it can be easily applied in the requisite amount and in the correct location. Now the nickel-palladium-manganese alloys are difiicult to work into wire, foil or the like. With difliculty they can be so Worked, but the wear on the tools is considerable.

Silver-palladium-manganese alloys are also better as brazing alloys than the aforementioned base-metal alloys, but suffer from a tendency to lose palladium and manganese into the parent alloys by diifusion, leaving a comparatively weak, silver-rich layer in the joint. Although attempts were made to overcome the foregoing difiiculties and other disadvantages, none, as far as I am aware, was entirely successful when carried into practice commercially on an industrial scale.

It has now been discovered that by the use of a special soldering technique involving the use of a special solder, the aforementioned disadvantages may be overcome.

It is an object of the invention to provide an improved, easily workable soldering alloy characterized by improved resistance to shear at elevated temperatures when employed in a joint, said alloy having requisite wetting and flowing properties and having a melting point of not less than about 1000 C. nor more than about 1250" C.

Another object of the invention is to provide a method of successfully and satisfactorily soldering heat resistant, chromium-containing alloys, such as nickel-chromium and nickel-chromium-iron alloys, wherein the soldered joint is characterized by improved mechanical properties at elevated temperatures, particularly improved resistance to shear.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a fabricated structural gas turbine assembly comprised of a plurality of heat resistant chromium-containing alloy members united by a solder joint comprised of a special joining alloy, the joined portions of the members having an improved combination of properties at elevated temperatures as compared to joined portions produced with conventional joining alloys.

The invention also provides a fabricated gas turbine structure comprising members of a chromium-containing alloy, such as nickel-chromium and nickel-chromiumiron alloys, united by one or more solder joints comice characterized by high mechanical strength, high creep resistance and by improved resistance to oxidation and to scaling at elevated temperatures of the order of about 550 C. to 900 C.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a fabricated gas turbine blade comprised of members of a chromium-containing alloy, e.g., nickel-chromium and nickel-chromium-iron alloys, united by one or more solder joints containing a special soldering alloy, said turbine blade being characterized by high mechanical strength and by improved resistance to creep, to oxidation and to scaling at elevated temperatures of the order of about 550 C. to 900 C.

The invention also contemplates providing a fabricated hollow blade structure for gas turbines comprising members of a chromium-containing alloy, such as nickel chromium and nickel-chromium-iron alloys, united by a joint comprised of a special joining alloy, said hollow blade structure being characterized by high mechanical strength and by improved resistance to creep, to shear, to oxidation and to scaling at elevated temperatures of the order of about 550 C. to 900 C.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing in which the figure is a ternary diagram showing diagrammatically the ranges of prised. of a special joining alloy, said structure being copper, palladium and manganese contemplated in accordance with the invention.

Generally speaking, the present invention is based on the surprising discovery that other ternary alloys are superior to the alloys previously used for the purpose in question. The alloys used for brazing metal parts according to the invention are ternary copper-palladiummanganese allows containing about to about 54% palladium, about 24% to about 88% copper and about 2% to about 50% manganese and having a composition falling within the area bounded by the line AEF-D and preferably within the area bounded by the line A--B--CD, in the accompanying drawing.

These areas are respectively defined by the co-ordinates of the points a, b, c, d, e, f, g, and a, b, 0, (1,, e h, g which specify the following alloy compositions according to the invention.

Pd C11 7 Mn a- 20 36 44 b- 35 28 87 c 44 30 26 50 39 11 48 35 17 46 50 4 40 50 10 12 84 4 14 76 10 10 48 42 The invention includes as novel alloys those lying within the area bounded by the line A-BC-D. It will be understood that impurities may also be present. The alloys within the aforementioned ranges of composition are readily worked without excessive wear on the tools into the required forms such as wire, sheet, strip, etc., so that the solder can be placed in situ between the parts to be joined. The alloys according to the invention melt at a temperature of the order of about 1000 C. and about 1250? C., have good flowing and wetting characteristics when molten and have a decreased tendency to react with the constituents of alloy parts to be joined. Thus, the solders of the present invention have a minimized tendency to react with such elements as nickel, chromium, molybdenum, etc. Further, the alloys of the present invention are characterized by a low potential for diffusion into hightemperature heat-resisting alloy components. The effect mass s Table Solder No lf'eclent Peggent Pelalcgnt It is to be noted that solders Nos. 1 and 2 have compositions which fall exclusively within the area on the graph bounded by line -AE-,-FD. The remaining solders in the table have compositions which fall within the area on the graph bounded by line 'AY-.-B-C.D. It is to be noted that the solders of the present invention may contain, in addition to copper, palladium and manganese, small amounts of impurities such as nickel cobalt and iron in a total amount not exceeding about 2%. These impurities in these amounts do not deleteriously effect the basic and" novel characteristics of the solders of the present n e ion,

The invention includes the brazing of parts with the use f. h s te alloys. o o m a le bje e in u to m r u e ,0 an ab t u h o of course, to a temperature above the solidus temperature of the brazing alloy. These parts such as turbine blade components, hollow tnrbine blade components, turbine rotors, turbine stators, etc., commonly consist of alloys which (by reason of the presence of chromium, aluminum, titanium or other elements) tend to form coherent, tenacious and refractory oxide films on their surfaces and so are resistant to scaling at high temperatures of the order of about 550 C. to about 850 C. Examples are alloys consisting predominantly of nickel, or nickel plus cobalt, wit h at least 5% chromium and with or without other ele ments such in particular as iron, titanium, aluminum and molybdeum; and austenitic chromium-containing steels, e.g., those of the 18% chromium-8% nickel type. The alloys can also be used with advantage for joining nickelmolybdenum creep-resisting alloys, tungsten and molyb: denum. It will be understood that the parts to be joined may beof identical alloys or metals, or that one may be of one of these alloys or metals and the other of another of these alloys or metals.

The refractory oxide films formed by most of these alloys may be removed to enable a good joint to be formed 4 by effecting the brazing with a flux of borax, boric acid or a mixture of borax and boric acid in a hydrogen atmosphere. The parts are then subjected to a temperature in excess of about 1200 C. and below the melting point of the components to be joined while in mutual contact with the solder of the present invention in order to effect the joining thereof. The parts are then cooled, for example, to about 1000 C. while maintaining the components in fixed relationship.

It is an advantage of the alloys used according to the invention that the clearance between the parts to be joined is not critical; not only do the alloys flow well when molten through capillary openings, but they will also fill large openings, so it is not necessary in preparing the surfaces to be joined to make them mate with one an other exactly.

It is a further advantage. that these alloys are better 4 adapted to vacuum brazing because at their flowing temperatures they have a lesser tendency to volatilize under vacuum than the prior alloys.

It is to be observed that the present invention provides a joining alloy and a method for the production of fabricated gas turbine sub-assemblies or structures made of parts of chromiurnscontaining or molybdennmscontaining al oy u h as sabe h m c e r mi mand nickel-molybdenum alloys, united by a joint comprised of the joining alloy containing copper, manganese and palladium as essential elements, whereby the united metal parts or members can be success-fully and satisfactorily used as high service temperatures of the order of about 550 C. to about 900 C.

As employed in the present specification and claims, the term heat-resistant metal is used to include metals and alloys having a melting point greater than about 1300 C., which contain one or more of the following elements in amounts up to about 20% iron, up to about 10% aluminum, up to about 10% titanium, up to about 2% zirconium, up to about 10% tantalum, up to about 10% niobium, up to about 10% tungsten, up to about 0.2% boron, up to about 2% copper, up to about 0.5% manganese, up to about 2% vanadium and up to about 1% beryllium and the balance being at least 5% and up to 500% of at least one metal selected from the group consisting of nickel, cobalt, chromium, molybdenum, tungsten and niobium.

Although the present invention has been described in conjunction with preferred embodiments, it is to be understood that modifications and variations may be resorted to without departing. from the spirit and scope of the invention, as those skilled in the art will readily understand. Such modifications and variations are considered tobe within the purview and scope of the invention and appended claims.

I claim:

1'. An easily workable solder characterized by an improved combination of properties, including good wetting and flowing properties in contact with chromium-containing metals, oxidation resistance, creep resistance, mechanical strength and having a low diffusion potential, for joining parts made of chromium-containing heat-resisting alloys into gas turbine structures and the like, which comprises an alloy containing about 24% to about 88% copper, about 10% to about 54% palladium and about 2%. to about 50% manganese in coordinated amounts falling within the ranges defined by the area bounded by the line AEFD. in the accompanying drawing.

2. An easily workable solder characterized by an improved combination of properties, including good wetting and flowing properties in contact with chromium-contain? ing'metals, oxidation resistance, creep resistance, mechanical strength and having a low diffusion potential, for joining partsmade of chromium-containing heat-resisting alloys into gas turbine structures and the like, which comprises an alloy containing about 24% to about 88% copper, about 10%. to about 54% palladium and about 2% to about 50%v manganese in coordinated amounts falling within the ranges defined by the area bounded by the line ABCD in the accompanying drawing.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,935,897 Wise Nov. 21, 1933 2,050,077 Wise Aug. 4, 1936 2,654,946 Rhodes on. 13,, 1953 2,729,881 Stumbock Jan. 10, 1956 2,815,282 Rhodes Dec. 3, 1957 4 7 WcmZ Ju y 29', 9

FOREIGN PATENTS 573,176, Great Britain Nov. 9, 19,45 

1. AN EASILY WORKABLE SOLDER CHARACTERIZED BY AN IMPROVED COMBINATION OF PROPERTIES, INCLUDING GOOD WETTING AND FLOWING PROPERTIES IN CONTACT WITH CHROMIUM-CONTAINING METALS, OXIDATION RESISTANCE, CREEP RESISTANCE, MECHANICAL STRENGTH AND HAVING A LOW DIFFUSION POTENTIAL, FOR JOINING PARTS MADE OF CHROMIUM-CONTAINING HEAT-RESISTING ALLOYS INTO GAS TURBINE STRUCTURES AND THE LIKE, WHICH COMPRISES AN ALLOY CONTAINING ABOUT 24% TO ABOUT 88% COPPER, ABOUT 10% TO ABOUT 54% PALLADIUM AND ABOUT 2% TO ABOUT 50% MANGANESE IN COORDINATED AMOUNTS FALLING WITHIN THE RANGES DEFINED BY THE AREA BOUNDED BY THE LINE AEFD IN THE ACCOMPANYING DRAWING. 